right, so i think i might need to start TT J. remind me, how do i start this?
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right, so i think i might need to start TT J. remind me, how do i start this?
G, can't remember properly myself lol, but I have had A sitting on the potty sometimes. She wasn't overly interested and was getting a bit upset so I have given up for now and will try again in a couple of months. You can go the bribe way - star chart and smarties. Someone in here did a 3 day thing with water loading and frequent asking that seems to work well - might be Trill?
Yeah, I did that. It worked really well too. G, maybe just start putting him in jocks and see how he goes? he should be old enough to start wanting to do it on his own. Even if you just do it for a few hours a day.
G, also have to say totally jealous that the end is in sight for nappies for you. I still have forever to go!
Arte, that's one of the things I don't miss! I'm so glad I'm not having to do nappies or toilet training again.
Must be great to just go places and not worry about nappies! And car seats! You must be nearly out of car seats Trill? That would be great!
Because of the new laws A still has to be in a booster till he's 7, but if he grows out of the maxirider I wont be rushing to get a new one - we stopped using the booster when P was 6. But yeah, will be great to not have a fixed carseat in the car anymore. It feels liberating to not have a nappy bag anymore too. I loved having the kids and loved having babies and all that, but after carting around a mountain of stuff for 9 years it was nice to not have to do it anymore.
im not sure if the end is actually in sight for me lol, think it might take a while with this one!
ok, i guess i'll try putting him in undies and see what happens. wish me luck!!!!
:goodluck: G!! Marta is at a slightly annoying stage in that everytime she sees one of us go to`the bathroom she demands to sit on her potty....
Wow Cass!! What a surprise, Congratulations!!
Arte - hope E is starting to feel a bit better.
Well the wedding went very well. We managed to get the only dry day in a week of torrential rain - it was still cold, but at least it was dry so we could have outside photos. Will get around to posting some more photos soon.
I hope she was able to relax a little knowing that her big day wasn't going to be wet - it would have made for a very anxious bride to be I'm sure.
The timing was so lucky Cally! it reminded me of our wedding where brisbane decided to break the 14 year drought the week we got married lol. only sunny day in weeks lol.
Holy cow Cass, i just had to pop in to say CONGRATULATIONS!!! How exciting. :D Will it be a US born bub?
How is it going Cass? Any morning sickness setting in yet?
Cally, glad you had good weather for the wedding
MD, how is everything?
W had his first school visit today. He was a bit nervous but he was quite happy to see a couple of his kindy friends there, especially one kid that he just made friends with literally the week before he went to school at the end of last year. He thinks his teacher is nice and seemed pretty positive about it. They also have lego for wet lunchtimes which is a winner.
Lego is always a winner!!!
Great Arte!!!
(I tried to pm you but your messages are full)
Hope everyone has had q great weekend - long weekend here which was great
Crazy busy week here so sorry if i am not back in much for a few days
Trill - how are things w the rain/floods?
Xxx
hello lovely ladies!
JM: thanks babe! it was definitely quite the news to us lol. we are so thrilled...and a little bit insane hahahahaha.
Arte: taht is awesome that he was good at the school. it is a big thing...leila was quite reserved and shy when we were there but then once we got home she was super excited about 'big school' :)
Cally: lego a winner...i had to giggle! has it been having a work out lately with all the rain?
Trill: hope that the flooding isn't affecting you and your friends too much xx
AFM: all good here. we have had a week of mellowness with the girls which has been a great respite. alot of D&Ms with leila about her craziness, which has been forcing her to really try and vocalise what it is that is annoying her or making her angry. it has been quite good for all us, as it means that rather than get frustrated at her i am using that energy to really ask her what is wrong and work through her anger with her. i hope that i can maintain it :lol:
spent the day at the beach yesterday with a group of friends, saw loads of dolphins and the girls (and the other kids) built a massive sandcastle city, while we the adults partook of delish food and beer (for those that could!). also went to the brentwood farmers markets...mmm mmm mmm....i ate sooo many papusa it wasnt funny. i dream of them.
oh, and i saw someone famous at the beach and we exchanged a brief sentence....her son got soaked in the ocean and my girls thought it was awesome that he rolled in the sand afterward and wanted to do the same....i dont know who she was...blond, gorgeous, mexican nanny lol. gah, i suck at this. but the papparazi were having a field day. they blend in really well...spookily. basically they pick a large group of people and try to blend in (so one guy looked like he was with this massive family!).
Cally, my dear, yay for a spot of miraculously dry weather! I saw the pics you put up on FB, you girls all looked gorgeous! You scrub up good, dontcha?! LOL I bet you're you're having a huge anticlimax after all thsoe weeks of lead up.
Well we've just arrived home after nearly a week in the Gong. I spent most of the time drinking tea and chinwagging with my friend, which did me no end of good. We took the kids to see the Harry Potter exhibition which was TOTALLY AWESOME. Hey I know those things aren't really real but when you've got Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem in a display case along with a basilisk tooth and all the other horcruxes, well it's pretty special anyway. I can't beleive no one has done a similar exhibition with all the stuff from LOTR. I would sooooo cue for hours to get in and see that stuff.
Cass, you are hilarious, woman! Start reading some gossip mags so we know who you're schmoosing hey?! Or next time take a photo with your android (cos we know you've got one now) and then we can all guess! Sounds like you're making the most of your location, anyway. :)
JM!!! Darlink how are you going??
Arte, yay for school visit success! :clap:
MD - it's not really an anticlimax, but I'm getting into the spirit of not having to expose myself in a bridesmaid dress! Mmm, cookies and cream ice cream.....
That HP exhibit looks awesome, I'd love to go see that.
Cass - no, we managed to be in Canberra for pretty much the whole rain experience so didn't have to take any drastic action to combat 'stuck at homeness'.
No sign of my new niece/nephew. Due date was yesterday. We're up again in Canberra this weekend for niece's 4th birthday so hopefully it shows up soon! We're going to go check out the fireworks and the balloon launching too!
Cally, they have extended the HP exhibition until April. Wish we'd known as we could've gone a bit later and then also seen the How to Train your Dragon thing too. But I don't think I mentioned the most amazing thing of all - it just so happened that my sister was in Sydney too (!!!!) so we were able to see her for a v. brief catch up and meet her new GF, which was lovely, and a real bonus since neither of us knew the other was going.
Ginger, how is the TT going with J?
MD: that is SUPER awesome! is that one of the first catchups since she moved away??? how did you guys realise that you were both in town? that is so cool/
Cally: is there a baby yet?! aww a new baby to snuggle!!!
AFM: we are off 'camping' today...in a luxury safari tent with double beds, fine linens and hardwood floors...and a heated pool lol. my sorta camping! i reckon the girls will love it as the place is up in santa barbara on 300 acres of forest and canyons and beaches...i wish we were going for a week, but i think it will be a one nighter...watch this space lol.
wow cass, that sound alike my kind of camping. i hate tents and dust and dirt! yuk
md- awesome on seeing your sis. we were thinking of going to the dragon thing but juts so exxy! now I'm thinking maybe if taking them to scooby doo?
TT not going well at all. he will not wear undies. goes and gets a nappy all the time. i think i might have to take him and buy him some thomas undies as L's second hand diego ones just aren't cutting it.
yah had L's swimming lesson today and he is going up a level for next term. so proud of him! he's doing so well :)
Awesome Ginger.
My sister's waters broke this morning, but nothing else happened. They started her slowly on the drip this afternoon, they don't want to do it too hard because last time was a C-section. If it doesn't start happening tonight then she will end up with another one, there was a bit of meconium in the waters. Good thing is that it will happen before the big sisters birthday on Sunday so they won't have to share.
MD, that is great you got to see your sister! How crazy that you were both in the same place at the same time! The HP exhibition sounds good. I have very fond memories of going to Te Papa in Wellington when I was 16 with my mum and brother to see a Star Trek exhibition. It was the only thing we ever did together as a family.
MP, how is the new job going? Or the end of the old one?
Cally, hope your little niece/nephew has arrived. Is this the second bub for your sister that has a girl a bit younger than K? Both K and your niece are stunning little girls!
Cass, I would love to do that sort of camping! DH is dead keen for us to walk for a million miles with massive packs and then sleep in a tiny thin cold tent and he gets the craps with me when I don't seem enthused! ATM I am saying it is too cold to have Erin out at night, but I am going to run out of excuses soon. I didn't sign on for that!
Ginger, well done to L! If there is one thing I don't like about living here it is the lack of swimming lessons. Although they did organize something this summer just gone, but I can't manage 3 of them on my own in the pool. Hopefully W picks up swimming with the school lessons. I was too unco and never learned :(
Trill, how is the study going? How much longer do you have now? I got a nice surprise the other day - I put in a fee appeal for my paper that I withdrew from last year and they turned me down but the other day I got a letter saying they had randomly reassessed it and gave me a credit for my fees. So now I am doing it again for free. Except I am sitting on the computer surfing instead of actually doing it lol.
DH has to go up to Rotorua next week for the whole week and the kids and I are tagging along! The company are paying for the motel, they just upgraded his room for us. W is very keen to go to the buried village (from the Mt Tarawera eruption) and the Hell's Gate thermal park. I am also wondering how 10 pin bowling would go but it might be too hard with all three kids - DH will have to work most days. I have never been to Rotorua so I am quite excited.
Ginger is there some kind of live Scooby Doo show? That's awesome about L's swimming. E is still in her beginner's class but she seems to be making progress... not sure though when exactly the actual "swimming" will kick in for her though. Definitely go for the thomas undies!
Cass, that "camping" trip sounds v. Santa Barbara! LOL I hope you're having an excellent time. Seems to be the season for short family getaways.
Arte - yay for your little family "holiday!" Rotorua is awesome, but very stinky :p. Can't believe I've been somewhere in NZ that you haven't!! I even have photos at Hell's Gate. The Star Trek exhibition must've made a lasting impression on you... Stuff like that is so important for kids. I remember when those Chinese buried soldier statues came out, we were visiting ADL and my dad took us - a few years later I had the opportunity to study Asian history and having actually seen all that stuff made it all 100% more relevant to me. BTW I have been meaning to ask you if E has settled back in with her night sleeps (am assuming she's mostly past her cold now?). Has she been taking extra feeds or eating more if you're offering since then?
Aunty Cally - how exciting! And how convenient she waited until the whole wedding was over :). I'm sure you'll be in to tell us all about it.
Ah my brain is soooo tired. It's only week 3 of the semester and already my frontal lobes feel like they've been steam-rollered. Hmmm, which bit of my thinking should I cut back on? :think:
G, definitely see if having new undies makes a difference. If he's not quite ready yet, it's OK - he's only just 3 and might need a little more time. L was about 3yr4mths before he was TTed - just wasn't ready before that and probably would have gone for longer had I not pushed him because I was nearly due iwth P and didn't want 3 in nappies. That is awesome about L's swimming too!
Cally, any baby news yet? We are waiting for DH's sister to have her baby too - she's due next week.
Cass, I'm loving the "I saw a celebrity but I don't know who it was" sightings LOL! There would be so many semi-obscure ones over there that we would have seen in bit parts that we know are familiar but we just can't place them. But it sounds like this one was the real deal if there were paps hanging around. Maybe this time you should google "blonde female movie stars' and see if you can pick her :lol:
MD, I love that it all worked out just right and you got to catch up with your sister and her DP! The world moves in mysterious ways doesn't it? So how are you going anyway? The trip sounds like it was great fun!
MP! How are things going with you and the new job?
Arte, that is fantstic they reviewed your application! How much does it cost per unit over there? Now the Govt reduced the discount we used to get, I have to pay nearly $700 per subject now! I can't afford to fail any :(
Study is going Good - 3 subjects are great, but one of them truly sucks ass! The lecturer is awful and there are so many of us putting in formal complaints over her. A few would drop the subject but it's too late to pick up anything else instead. One did drop it though and she's devastated. I'm just going to do the best I can and hope for a pass.
Things are pretty busy here - L had his selective school exams yesterday for high school next year. He was pretty down about it because he only finished one exam out of the 5 of them, but I told him that they are designed so you can't get full marks - which they state on the information about them. he's never not finished an exam and he took it as a sign he didn't do well, but for the 2 general knowledge tests they had 60 questions to answer in 40 minutes which is a massive task for anyone to do! I still think he would have done OK though.
P goes in for her surgery next tuesday! That time has just flown by! I have all her schoolwork organised so she can keep on top of it while she's home for 2 weeks.
Trill, if he's actually finished one that's a good sign that he's v. strong in that area and more significant than the ones he didn't finish, kwim? I hope you get through the semester with the terrible lecturer intact - I had one like that last year, but because it was my first back since chemobrain I thought it was all me. In the end I got really low marks but I think he might have penalised me because of taking extensions & disability status etc (which isn't supposed to happen AND he never returned the final work for me to see exactly how that had been graded :wall:) and I tell ya the proof will be in how well I do in all the other subjects - EAT THAT YOU TERRIBLE LECTURER. This semester the teacher I have is FANTASTIC :cheer: - I had him when I was at TAFE and he was fantastic there too - it's funny that it can make such a difference even int he distance ed setting, isn't it?
I know MD! External students rely on the information the lecturer gives them and she wasn't giving us the same info and instructions that she was for the internal students even though we were getting the exact same assessments which was grossly unfair. To cap it off she is refusing to provide us with a marking rubric so we have no idea at all what constitutes a pass! She keeps telling us that it's not about HD's or Passes, but about our work, but she doesn't understand that we don't even know what the bare minimum IS! We could think we have done a good assignment but in her eyes it might be a fail. And it's music too which I think makes it even harder because you can't fake it kwim? I hope this year you rock their world with your brilliance and poo to the bad lecturer you had last year.
Trill, that's atrocious. Sounds like she's there because she's escaped from the real world into the refuge that is academia, rather than any teaching skill. What a twit. Many of my lecturers are themselves studying or have recently studied and so they have a much stronger sense of what it's like to be at the other end of the PC. BTW you're too kind, no brilliance to see here, everyone move along. One of the group members I'm workign with on this assignment is exactly the same kind of smarty pants that I used to be... streets ahead of all of us... and I'm just plodding along like everyone else LOL.
Don't sell yourself short MD! I'm sure you still have plenty of brilliance left :hug: The lecturer we have though was thrown in at the deep end with it - she usually teaches the high school music teaching units and is a classically trained musician herself so this is the first time she's had to 'dumb it down' for primary level teaching. Not only that, last year they used to have a 4 day intensive school for this subject, but now that they are moving to fully online they canned the res school, but obviously haven't allowed for the difficulty of teaching the unit without one. But there are other things too like her lack of forum support for us and answering our questions, so despite not teaching this unit before, she could be doing a whole lot more to help us.
My sister ended up with a Csection late last night after presumably any sign of progression. A little boy (as I was expecting) to join their family. His big sister turns 4 on Sunday. No details on size or anything else yet.
Trill - studying music fully distance ed sounds so hard! I'm sure L did well with his exams.
Cass - enjoy your camping, that sounds like the sort I'm into - I'm a bit like Arte with regards standard camping!
ARte - enjoy your little trip to Rotorua.
congrats on your new little nephew cally!
congrats on the nephew! woo hoo! :dance: newborn snuggles! :bluecheer:
Trill: oohhh that would suck having a lecturer like that. i found open ed so tricky when i was in fiji...you just dont get the same amount of important info, and it is just inherently hard to know what your teachers want compared to internal students; so i reckon you are doing brilliantly! but tell me, how does one do music external?! is it like music theory or something?
MD: dude, you are describing me while doing the phd. i watched as young, bright things with a full nights sleep and a fashionable wardrobe 'engaged' in lively debates at seminars and papers while, moi, sat back and yawned and wondered if diaspora was spelt with a capital :rofl:
Arte: oh the family trip is exciting! they are the stuff of making memories!
AFM: we are baackkkk! only stayed the one night as planned :( both DH and i were keen to stay another night, but we felt committed to coming home...it was GORGEOUS! santa barbara will be my place of choice when i win my millions. i already found my perfect home just outside of town in montecito...a 10 acre equestrian lovers ranch...for a mere $16 million lol. DH told me that if we had money like that there is no way on earth that he would move here lol. ah well, a girl can dream! the tent was luxe! with dimmer lights and all lol. we even ordered a 'bbq' pack that included: marinated chicken breasts, hotdogs for the girls, garden salad with a choice of dressings, marshmallows, marshmallow sticks (!), hershey chocolate bars, garlic bread and pinto beans! they even included the utensils, the firestarters and wood lol. ahhh all the thinking taken out for us! my kinda camping :lol:
of course, the midnight visitor was less than welcome....a skunk! it managed to unzip the tent just enough to squeeze on in and sniff around to see if it could find some goodies lol. i turned on my light and looked at her and we both stared at eachother. i swear she was telling me to switch off the light, get back into bed and pretent that i didnt see anything, but i looked harder at her and she sighed (yes, really lol!) and stormed out. ANYWAY, so i woke DH up and told him to zip the tent properly this time and he did and the little terd of a skunk hadnt even waddled away!! she was waiting for me to switch the light back off and go to bed hahahahaha. once she saw that alcatraz had been enacted she finally went away (stomping loudly across our verandah hahaha)
:rofl: Cass, that would have been hilarious! So glad that she didn't show you her disapproval for keeping her out!
LOL Cass, sounds like you guys are having a great adventure!
MD, I have been meaning to thank you for mentioning the extra feeds - she put on 500g over the last month which is a big improvement on nothing the month before. About 3 days ago she stopped sneezing 11's, and now today A and E are both full of snot again! It is unreal! If this could takes hold it will be her #6 in 6 months! Sleepwise she is better, not great but better than those torture nights.
You have probably been lots of places in NZ that I haven't. We didn't go anywhere when I was growing up and atm we don't tend to travel very far - I seem to have a two hour travel radius since we got back to nz (apart from the odd trip to Southland but that never counts lol). I haven't even been to Auckland!
Trill, I think it is around the $600-700 mark per subject. I don't really look, it is all stacking onto my student loan for future me to worry about lol How much did you pay for subjects before the rise?
Cally, congrats on the baby! Does your sister live close?
Looks like my brother is moving in while we are away. He lost his job and couldn't pay rent anymore so he and his girlfriend are moving up here. Hopefully they can get some seasonal work. Plan is for them to stay with us for a few weeks and then stay in this house when we move into town. I won't charge rent but they are happy to help us shift and clean the house after we are gone which is fantastic because I was dreading coming back to clean with kids in tow. Funny, cos we fought like cats and dogs when we were kids (5 year age gap) and now we get along pretty well.
arte- thats good about your bro. nice of them to help clean up.
cass- that skunk is so bold! what a crack up.
md- yes there are scooby doo live concerts, but unfortunately we'll be in sydney when the melbourne ones are on and in melbourne when the sydney ones are on, so just can't make it work! grrr L would've loved to go to that.
dh and i are having major fights at the moment. we have made friends with a new couple this year who live nearby. i get along well with the wife and we have been seeing a lot of each other, but there is some issues with their ds. his behaviour is a little strange sometimes, and to cut a long story short, dh doesn't want me to see them anymore. he doesn't want L around this kid. he thinks that his behaviour is starting to rub off on L and that i am doing the wrong thing by L. it is quite upsetting. she called me the other day and i met her at the park and dh absolutely cracked it at me. now we are having major tension.
What sort of behaviour is it G? Violent, disrespectful or hyper? L is about to start school where he will be exposed to lots of different kids and not all will be good influences. It is definitely easier to avoid the kid, but long term it is better to teach L why the behaviour isn't acceptable and encourage him not to do it iykwim. It isn't that easy to make friends and you have good judgement, I am sure you are aware of the situation better than your DH. I am not really in a position to give behaviour advice though, so my words probably don't hold much weight. I hope you can sort it out xx
Trill, that's probably the main point of difference between my course and yours - mine is delivered entirely on a distance ed basis. Means they've pretty much refined the process and if you get a numpty for a lecturer then every one else gets the same level of numpty too. :) I keep thinking this study gig should be easier than it is (because it seems a lot harder than it ever was in the past) but I guess i've probably got more balls in the air now than I did when I was younger. I don't know how you handle that study load, Trill.
Congratulations Aunty Cally! :cheer: Have they picked a name yet?
Cass, Oprah lives in Montecito! (I know this because I was getting lots of hits from CA to my blog so, well, I had to check, right?) So when you get your millions I'll pop over to visit you and who knows if we hang around we might accidently "bump" into her in a neighbourly fashion :rofl: Your skunk encounter was pretty cool.... it could have ended much, much worse!
Arte, it might be worth putting all the kidlets onto some probiotics - it might help keep the snots away. Glad to hear E is gaining again, one less thing for you to worry over. :) That's great your bro is moving in, hope it works well for everyone. My sis and I used to fight bitterly as kids and now we're closer than close.
Ginger that's a tough one. I guess it depends on how strange "strange" is... and how exactly the behaviour might be rubbing off on L. Maybe the compromise could be that DH chills out and you offer to see her/them a little less often.
G: we had a friend like that. except it was me telling DH not to have them around and try to minimise contact. in our case the little boy was really quite violent and the mum always turned a blind eye...even when he had L in a headlock and was trying to kick her :o. so i called that one off lol. i guess it depends on what is irking him? I reckon Arte has a point though, that it is about teaching our kids how to handle some situations, and if what is irking him is a sometimes thing than it surely can be worked around?
MD: you meant to say that i like totally was in the 'hood with Oprah! awesomeness! i can see why she lives there. it is gorgeous beyond belief.
Arte: that is pretty awesome about the arrangement with your brother...love how some things fall into place like that!
AFM: all good here. we went to LACMA (art museum thingo here in LA) and the girls had a blast in teh korean painting room; basically they get to paint lol. it was a messy, fun affair. i am so so nauseus it aint funny. i hope that it passes soon...not having fun!